GIMV sells Ominstor

The German anti-trust authorities have approved the sale of Omnistor, the Belgian manufacturer of accessories for recreational vehicles, to Thule, the Candover owned carrack company. The deal was originally announced in June but was subject to the approval of anti trust authorities in different European countries. Now the Germans have given the green light, it means Omnistor’s backers, GIMV and the Buyout Fund (BOF), can realise their 90% stake.

No transaction value was disclosed but GIMV did make €8.4m from the deal, and it also owns 32.86% of BOF, a Belgian fund managed by Maple Finance Group. The two funds acquired their controlling share in 2001.

Omnistor posted €34m worth of sales in 2004 with an operating margin of 24%.